


Mowgli

by Guntz



Category: Jurassic Park (Movies), Jurassic Park - All Media Types, Jurassic World (2015)
Genre: Bonding of all kinds, F/M, Romance, inaccurate depictions of dinosaurs, inaccurate depictions of science
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2015-06-29
Updated: 2015-07-04
Packaged: 2018-04-06 18:26:00
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 3
Words: 4,352
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4232148
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Guntz/pseuds/Guntz
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>I could feel their eyes looking.</p><p>I probably would have wrote it off that there was a woman in the presence of a male-dominated environment and that I was sudden piece of eye-candy for them, but I knew those <i>stares</i>. I had seen it when my father and mother saw me for the first time in years; the looks other girls gave me in gym locker rooms; the staring on my back when I took a dip in the pool.</p><p>I was a living reminder that men should tread lightly when walking amongst ancient beasts without cages and high walls to keep them safe.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Looking Back

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I remembered--

**Palm Springs** , **Colorado**

**2010**

"Ms. Castine?"

I didn't pause from my washing. Dad had complained time and time again to get it wash otherwise it was going to stick to the paint like second skin and end up looking like something from a Mad Max movie. While I couldn't care much about that, I really got tired of hearing him whine and moan about the appearance (like he was a kid who didn't want to be seen by his friend riding in his mom's uncool car) and decided to just get it clean if only to cease his droning. The more I cleaned it, the more I suddenly remembered that underneath the mud, dirt, and grime, the color of the pain was a deep red rather than maroon.

Huh, imagine that.

"You must be Ms. Castine," the speaker continued. "I dunno if you remember, but we met some seven years ago--"

The power hose in my hand abruptly ceased its spitting of water. The echoing of water spraying that filled the large garage went nearly deathly silent. I watched the water drip down from the hood of the car before moving them to the person standing somewhere behind me on my left. It didn't take me long to look back and remember who that man standing before me was because I couldn't honestly forget a guy like him. A man that could throw you a winning smile while pointing a gun at your face like we were having a nice barbeque in his backyard or something. Almost immediately, his name followed through.

"Lieutenant Hoskins."

Ah, there was the winning smile, just like the one from all those years ago.

"I was pretty sure you forgot all about me!" he laughed as he removed his aviator shades and folded them over the front pocket of his vest. "I'm glad."

I hummed as I returned to the car to wash it off from a different side.

"You're working for InGen."

The badge logo on his vest gave it away, and the fact that he was here talking to me meant that this conversation was going to veer into a direction I wasn't going to like. Hoskins probably knew that but decided to brave the waters and take a crack shot at it anyway regardless of what had happened that caused us to meet in very hazardous circumstances...

"Yeah, I kinda had to considering the circumstances."

I could only hum again.

His shoes clacked against the floor before stopping beside me. My teeth were tightly pressed against one another like I was waiting to get hit with something. I wasn't disappointed.

"There's a new research program being set up in the Park, and I recommended you."

"A program, huh?" I knew without a doubt what sort of research program that Hoskins was referring to. "No thanks. I'm sure you can find somebody better qualified than a paper-pusher."

With that, I snapped the power hose shut and tossed it off the side. I internally growled when I heard the older man shadowing my footsteps as I walked around the vehicle to find some towels to dry it off with. My step dad advised, after agreeing to my father's complaints about the state of the car, that I should always dry the car properly since the sun could just the ruin the pain with water drying against it. Another person I had to appease in order to silence them and have a peace of mind.

"C'mon, kid!" Hoskins urged. "This is an opportunity to show what you could do!"

"I didn't exactly have a choice," I snapped. "I sure as hell couldn't fight them, so I joined them."

"But you could do it again, couldn't ya?" his excitement was brushing past my reasoning of declining. "With a fresh batch, you could do it, right?"

I didn't answer him. I wasn't that great of a liar, anyway.

"I saw what you did back there," his voice suddenly low, but there was a sense of awe coming out of his tone that it made me feel tight in the stomach. "What you did back there all those years ago... I still sometimes have trouble comprehending what had happened. I had to look back to those body cams and see what you were capable of doing to those--"

" _Enough_!" I shouted, my voice ringing loud and clear and bouncing off the walls.

It was quiet and still again.

The quiet made my mind fill in the noise of things I wished to forget, and the stillness made my eyes imagine how perfect this would have been for Hoskins to find himself pinned on the floor while he was screaming as his intestines were spilling out from his rotund frame. I shook off those thoughts, but they always came back in some way. Everywhere I went, I would imagine a scenario where everything could have been played out nicely by someone dying in a gruesome way in order to eat them or what great offenses to catch an enemy unaware.

An envelope was placed carefully on the hood of the car.

"You know where to find me if you decide to give it a shot. But this is going to happen, with or without ya."

Shoes clacked, echoing before trailing off and the large room was again met with silence. I stared at the immaculate white envelope before picking it up and heading towards a nearby trash can bin and--

I swallowed thickly, my fingers still holding and refusing to surrender the envelope to the bin.

After a minute of just standing there like some idiot, I turned away and headed back to the car.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> \--and I tried to forget.


	2. Bury

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I dig into the earth--

I cursed Hoskins under my breath, and damned him once again in my head.

The following weeks after our little reunion (if one could call it that), all I could think about was him and his offer. The Park was off-limits, as was a warning for everyone in my family and friends circle. People were too ignorant of the danger the animals of an ancient era could bring about in modern times, but there was great appeal in bringing back a long-dead species to life and being able to see, smell, and touch them that made people forget what they were dealing with momentarily. Still, it didn't remove the fact that said species could kill you if you were dumb enough to try and touch it.

Yet somehow, when I wasn't thinking much (trying not to think about _those_ thoughts) I found myself drifting off to the one place that became a sort of taboo around family and friends. So far, there had been no incidents since it's reopening from five years earlier. Reviewers giving it a five out of five, animal rights activists going in wary and coming out satisfied, and the masses enjoying walking side-by-side with dinosaurs. But the handful, the ones that were truly wary from the first incident on the island, the second from San Diego, and the latest one in Sorna... They refused to budge an inch at the offers the Park had to offer. There was no guarantee that something was going to go wrong the second they set foot on that island; it was just their luck.

And something was going to go wrong. If the implications from Hoskins about the new project InGen was cooking up was true, then the Park would be hit with another disaster as it had the first time around; forget the fact that they were equipped with professional military men, or that they had state-of-the-art security, or that they had concrete walls, bars, and cages.

The types of animals they planned on creating were the ones that always found a way around. _Always_.

And that was how I ended up on a boat that left the docks of Costa Rica, ferrying all the happy little people who excitedly chattered all around me about the dinosaurs they were going to see and post on their Facebook pages. The phone on my back pocket continued to buzz to life almost every five minutes and I felt guilty for not answering it, but more afraid to pick it up.

Before I left for Costa Rica, I had relayed what had happened weeks earlier when Hoskins had paid me a first visit. The reaction, as I had imagined, was not pretty. I could have taken to my mother yelling at the top of her lungs until some police arrived after getting some worried calls about what neighbors had assumed was a very violent domestic dispute, but my father on the other hand...

An iceberg had nothing on the cold, silent fury he displayed to me that night.

I had nearly bolted out of the room from that one look on his face.

And that was why I, like the coward I was, rabbited out of the country as quietly as I could before they got any ideas to bar me from going. However, despite their protest, I knew they knew I could handle myself better than most when the worst case scenario actually became a reality. First and foremost, I was their kid. My parents had went through hell and they lived to tell tales, and I had always taken their tales to mind, heart, and soul.

Otherwise, I brushed a hand against my arm, I wouldn't be alive right now.

Besides, this wasn't the first time I was left completely alone in hostile territory.

* * *

 There was someone waiting for me.

 The docks was flooded with a swarm of people, making the air around me much more harder to breath with the heart baring down. The person holding a plaque with my name looked casual and laid-back that I would have almost written him off as harmless. Past experience, however, caused me to second guess at everything.

It's why I didn't have a lot of friends to begin with, just the ones my family knew very well from their shared experiences.

Reaching the man dressed in his beige slacks, working shoes made for hiking rather than following the masses through the Main Street of the Park and dressed in a white buttoned shirt that were rolled up to his elbows, I could see his eyes squinting at me from behind his sunglasses. His light hair was beginning to recede and his skin looked inflamed but his face didn't reveal he was uncomfortable.

I was dressed in jeans that were thin but loose enough that my legs didn't feel restrained, a gray tank-top with a loose half-length jacket with my sleeves rolled up to my forearms. My duffel bag weight heavily against my side as I stopped in front of him with a blank look. With a practiced blank look I had used as a poker face for the past few years, I didn't squirm under the obvious stare-down the other man was giving me when he took in my frame.

A hand was stretched out. "I'm Terry Dodger. Hoskins couldn't make it because of his meeting with the CEO."

I took his hand and gave it a good shake before retracted it to my side.

"I was told to take you to the Lab at the Innovation Center."

"I've only stepped onto the island not a minute ago and already he's bringing this down on me," I snorted and the other man only smirked.

"Let's get going. They're waiting for you."

I didn't have to ask who as I followed him towards the Monorail. Thankfully, the crowd moved quickly enough to get aboard and it wasn't long when the doors closed the machine began to move. I sat by the window and watched the station go by until it was left behind and there was nothing but rich green forests that nearly covered the entire island. A sudden chill of goosebumps went through my body, and oddly enough, it wasn't the unpleasant kind.

Was this the feeling _they_ had felt when they too had first come to the island?

A swarm of people crowded to the front of the glass pane window the Monorail. Whispers of awe waved over them a great gate began to open its colossal doors to the incoming crowds. Big blue letters lined together and I was again washed over with a feeling of pleasant chills as I watched the gate come closer and closer.

**JURASSIC WORLD**

For a single moment, I felt like a little girl still bouncing excitedly on my mother's knee as she took me to a place full of wonder and amazement. I could almost feel her arms wrapped loosely around my waist, her mouth resting against the back of my head, and her voice whispering sweet nothings as she basked in my joy.

I push back the memory and watch silently as the machine began to slow down in the approach of the station. There was a crowd waiting with their luggage, children, and souvenirs from the park in their hands with bright smiles on all their faces. People began to leave once the doors opened but the process was slow, so Dodger and I (and the few wiser folks) sat until it began to empty the cart enough that we would finally get up with the hassle of being bumped into by over-eager children and pushy adults.

"This way," Dodger pulled at my elbow when I was about to follow the mob down some set of stairs.

He lead the way towards a few security men standing guard over some restricted access that only employees of the Park entered. The place led to what was an underground pathway, for what purpose, however, I couldn't figure out. Seeing the curiosity written on my face, Dodger waved around the underground pathway as he spoke.

"The pipes are used to filter out the water from the lagoon you just saw on the Monorail. The Mosasaurus can be pretty difficult to see in murky water, so we try to keep it as much clean enough that it looked like some beach you usually see in the Bahamas."

"Mosasaurus..." I squinted at the name for a moment. "The big whale slash croc dinosaur, right?"

"All eighty-eight teeth of it, yes."

"Why are we here, then?"

"Oh, this? This is just a short-cut I use to get around without being slowed down by the masses."

Resourceful man, I thought as we shared a smile. I was going to keep him around so I could learn what other gold pot worthy secrets he could reveal to me to use to my advantage when venturing out in Jurassic World. We carried on with our trek towards the Innovation Center where I would be meeting with my future co-workers, managers, and higher ups. It was a bit jarring to be thrown into something so sudden, but I had a feeling that once the stone got to rolling that everything would be fine. Or closest to fine you can get when working with prehistoric theme park monsters. Dodger stopped me from going straight by a turn that would lead to a door, and the older man opened the dark blue door and I assaulted with fresh, cool ventilation system that chased away the heat and sweat.

I was also assaulted by a Tyrannosaurus Rex opening its jaws towards me.

I didn't remember what happened next, but I definitely remembered shouting and tackling Dodger back behind the blue door where we both crashed into a pile of tangled limbs with my duffel bags crushing us.

_'Escape!'_

Every inch of my body fell into a tune I hadn't felt in a long time. It had faded like a dusty paper that became crumpled and worn over time, but it endured and it hit me with full force. I grabbed Dodger, pulling him up with me and pushing him back further, my eyes trained on the intruder that threatened me and my pac--

"--ey! **_HEY_**!"

I was... wait...

"Jesus, kid," a voice said with some humor coated on it. "It's just a hologram."

One moment, I was in the middle of somewhere familiar... the next, I was standing at the blue door's entrance way that led into the Innovation Center. A pair of security guards stood in front of me, their bodies tenses while their faces looked a mixture of caution and humor. It took me a second to realize I was still clutching to a flustered-looking Dodger. Steadying my rapid heart, I looked up to find the tyrannical beast looking as frightening as the real deal before it disappeared in the blink of an eye to be replaced by an Inguanodon.

And there was people staring at my general direction.

I swallowed thickly.

"Are you alright, ma'am?" one of the security men asked.

I gave a slow nod, not trusting myself to speak.

"The Creation Lab is this way," Dodger spoke up. I was thankful that he was putting this little spectacle fast behind him and giving the guards a look that they needed to buzz off.

I followed after him, my eyes staring straight at the back of his head so I didn't have to look at the tourists who were still openly gawking at me. Without my consent, my eyes drifted off to the side and I spotted a group of little kids that were sitting in a sandy box with tool brushes in their hands. A stimulated dig site where they got to uncovered what sort of bones that hid beneath the sands and rocks.

I remembered mom once telling me that when I was seven, I would follow my dad around to one of his dig sites and help him out with uncovering dinosaur bones to carry back to museums or universities. She said that it was most fun I had when I spent time with my mostly absent father.

Strangely enough, I couldn't remember a lot of things happening before The Incident.

Because of what had happened, there was things that I had unwillingly casted aside in order to live to see and breathe the next day; all I could recall in my younger years was the terror, darkness, and utter isolation. Nothing else mattered...

And after that was over, I tried to remember the important things. And that was how, to this day, I was still trying to pick up the pieces left in me when I wanted to erase the dark jungles and silent monster that haunted my dreams.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> \--because I'm still looking for myself.


	3. Shark Waters

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> That water looked untouched and serene--

The Hammond's Creation Lab was immaculate.

Everything was organized, tight, and sterile inside. The doctors and scientists moving about inside even looked like they had went through pain-staking effort to have their steps be purposeful and perfectly coordinated that they wouldn't accidentally bump into other fellows that worked along side them. It looked completely flawless as a ballet.

Not even a minute and already I hated it.

Mindless beings too focused on their work that they didn't even begin to question the morals of what they were doing. It was either for the name of science or a load of money to stuff in their bank account.

Dodger had left me alone once we reached the labs. After informing a nearby receptionist about my presence, I was told that someone would be joining me soon to talk about my job in the Park. Taking that as his cue, the older man took my duffel bags and headed off to my temporary living space in the nearby hotel until I would be either assigned to a permanent home in the employees-only apartments or the small bungalows located near the lake (that didn't contain a whale-sized dinosaur haunting Great Whites). I waited patiently while watching blankly at the people working tirelessly inside their stark white walls.

It was a bit daunting in a sense to watch the scientists cook up fresh batches of dinosaur eggs with such ease that it left me wondering: did these people ever go outside to take a look at what they had made? My thoughts were interrupted when something wafted in the air that my nose caught the scent; it smelled expensive and dense.

Corporate people.

I didn't turn around when the door behind me opened, the sounds of clicking heels crowding around and leaving lingering echoes since the room we were in had quite big enough space. Following the heels and smells of thick perfume and cologne, I heard the pattern of stomping feet that did not at all belong with the suits and ties group.

"Hoskins," I greeted with a flat voice.

A chuckle and a large hand clapped me from roughly on my back, my body jerking slightly forward before settling back on the balls of my feet. I gave the older man a side glance but said nothing more as I turned back to the lab.

"I knew you wouldn't back down from this, kid." Hoskins grinned down at me then turned over to face the others. "This lady here is one I recommended for your research program. This is up her alley and I can guarantee you that she will get the job done."

So these suits were the ones that decided if I was worth it or not.

"Mr. Hoskins," a woman spoke up, her heels clicking on the porcelain floor as I heard her step closer to where he and I stood. "As much as we appreciate your efforts and enthusiasm to get this project started, we are looking for certain people who fit the criteria of this program."

"Now, Ms. Claire--"

"Dearing, Hoskins." her voice cuts in sharp like the biting edges of a glacier. The authority the woman held made the corner of my lips curl as I watched Hoskins shift uncomfortably in his leather shoes from beside me. "We're looking for people who have experience in working with animals, not a secretary to a food distributing warehouse company--"

"And I suppose you're _certain criteria_ has experience with these animals you're using your program on?" I interrupted.

I could _feel_ her frosty eyes glaring at the back of my head, but I was still staring at the scientists beyond the looking glass. Like a bunch of busy bees working endlessly in an equally busy hive.

"Our company is very much capable of selecting the best animal behaviorists we can find dealing with predators." came a clipped reply.

"Yeah, so did Hammond." I returned without missing a beat. "And they got eaten by the same ones you plan on recreating."

"And you would know." came a skeptical retort. The force behind her words made it feel like she wanted to say something more biting, but she held back since showing weakness against my little attacks would result in sharks smelling blood that they wouldn't miss in attacking. Such was the world of business politics.

Getting tired of watching the men and women in lab coats, I turned around to face the voice that spoke of authority and control. Like an ice queen, my mind noted as I gave her a quick once over. Dressed neatly in big name brands that most likely costed more than my monthly rent back home. She was tall and clean in her white stilettos and business attire (white slacks, baby blue blouse, white blazer rolled to her elbows) showed that she belonged inside the buildings full of air conditioning and cubical offices instead of the sweltering heat of outside covered in jungle, mud, and buzzing mosquitoes.

The one thing that attracted my eyes was the bright red hair curled neatly on her head that fell in lovely waves. Her very presence made the whole room suddenly demand attention to her person, and I suppose that was a great thing in the world of business... it made me wonder that if things had been different, just how well she could have done if she took a profession involving raising animals that constantly made it a mission to dismiss a person's demand of attention. She probably could have pulled it off, especially with that steely gaze that settled on my frame when she looked at me.

Well, they were steely until she actually _looked_ at me.

Her iron mask immediately fell when her ice blue/green eyes traveled over my face before falling onto my collar bone. The familiar reaction I had seen countless times for every new face I met didn't bother me anymore as it had in the first few months. It was just human nature to stare at something that did not belong.

"Yes, Ms. Dearing," I answered as I stared meaningfully at her. "I would know."

The red-headed beauty made it a trying effort to not let her eyes wander to seek out what else was wrong and what else stood out but keep them on my own bright blue orbs.

A dark-skinned hand stuck out, breaking me out of my long stare from Ms. Dearing and towards the owner of the arm. A face I had seen twice in my personal life while spotting many times on the television screen, Mr. Masrani's deep brown eyes stared at me both in solemnity and relief. He was probably just as wary of the idea as I and few others had been but had no choice to comply considering the need of the consumers to continue the park was bigger than the need to be cautious. I took his hand and gave it a few shakes before we both retracted our limbs.

"It is a pleasure to have you on board of this program. I am eased to know you'll be leading this." Masrani tipped his head before gesturing to Ms. Dearing. "Ms. Dearing is the Park's Operations Managaer. She will be your informant for the time being to get things up and running when you're ready."

I let out a quiet sigh. "Yeah."

I felt Hoskins giving me a quick pat on the shoulder. I looked back to Ms. Dearing.

"When do I get started?" I asked the Operations Manager.

Her answer was immediate. "Dr. Wu is already starting on the Velociraptor embryos as we speak."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> \--but the fingers that brushed through created ripples and unease on the surface.


End file.
